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Ernest Ansermet

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist

Ernest Ansermet was a Swiss conductor, born in Vevey in 1883. He began as a professor of mathematics at the University of Lausanne and in 1912 started conducting at the casino in Montreux. From 1915 to 1923 he led Diaghilev's Ballets Russes. Travelling for the company, he met Debussy and Ravel, with whom he discussed the performance of their works. During the First World War he got to know Igor Stravinsky, who was living in exile in Switzerland. There his lifelong bond with Russian music began.

Music and breakthrough

In 1918 he founded the Orchestre de la Suisse Romande. He became known for precise performances of difficult modern music. After the Second World War he and his orchestra obtained a long-term contract with Decca, and until his death he recorded the greater part of his repertoire, often two or three times. His records include Petrushka in 1950, Le Sacre du printemps in 1951 and the complete ballet Daphnis et Chloé in 1953, as well as Debussy's La Mer and Beethoven's Ninth Symphony. His readings were clear and authoritative, although the orchestra did not always reach the highest international level.

Influence

Ansermet was one of the first in the classical world to take jazz seriously: in 1919 he wrote an article in which he praised Sidney Bechet. He played Stravinsky's works in their original version and disapproved of the composer's revisions. He avoided the music of Schoenberg and his circle entirely, and wrote a book against it, which damaged his reputation after the war. His importance lies in his recordings of Stravinsky, Debussy and Ravel, with which he spread ballet and modern music early on.

Listening

Listening tip. Listen to his 1951 recording of Le Sacre du printemps and notice how sharply and clearly the rhythmic blocks and the dissonant chords are worked out.

Discography

Studio albums

In School of Rock

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Categories: Artists